Collapsible container



sep t- 30, 1958 M. E. FOSTER ET AL 2,854,165

COLLAPSIBLE CONTAINER Filed Oct. 13, 1954 v4 Sheets-Sheet l 51 /4 :gjINVENTORS MITCHELL E. Fosrze 3 \Lv 7 Hum! H PURCEE ATTORNEYS.

M. E FOSTER ETAL COLLAPSIBLEZ CQNTAINER' Sept. 30, 1958 4 Sheets-Sheet 2Filed Oct. 13. 1954 m a a V\ V VV V VVVu o gg m Wm 4 v V w vvvvv FIG. 5

INVENTORS MITCHELL E. Hasrse 5 ALA/V H. Puecse h m,

ATTORNEYS Sept 30, 1958 M. E. FOSTER ETAL 2,854,165

COLLAPSIBLE CONTAINER Filed Oct. 13, 1954 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 United StatesPatent ce COLLAPSIBLE CONTAINER Mitchell E. Foster, Birmingham, and AlanH. Purcer, Detroit, Mich, assignors to Packing Material Company, Inc.,Detroit, Mich, a corporation of Michigan Application October 13, 1954,Serial No. 461,994

2 Claims. (Cl. 217-3) This invention relates to pallet type containersand has particularly to do with a knock-down type of container in whichthe bottom wall is fashioned as a pallet.

Pallet type containers are used extensively for crating appliances andthe like for shipping and are also used for shipping and storage of avariety of small work pieces. In many instances, it is desirable toprovide a container of this type that can be knocked down so as to beshipped by the manufacturer to the user, returned to the user or storedby the user in a flat, compact condition. At the same time, with respectto many articles shipped or stored in pallet type containers, thecontainer must be relatively substantial with respect to rigidity; butrigidity is not of prime importance. Thus there is a need for a pallettype container which can be knocked down to a compact size and whichcombines light weight with relatively great strength. The provision of acontainer meeting these requirements is the object of the presentinvention.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a side elevation of one form of pallet type containerconstructed in accordance with the present invention.

Fig. 2 is an end view of the container shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along the line 33 in Fig.1.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary horizontal sectional view of the container shownin Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of a side and end wall panel of the containershownin Fig. l in the knocked down condition.

Fig. 6 is a side elevational view of a pallet type container of modifiedconstruction.

Fig. 7 is an end view of the container shown in Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary horizontal sectional view of the container shownin Fig. 6.

Fig. 9 is a plan view of a side and end wall panel of the containershown in Fig. 6 in the knocked down condition.

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary sectional view along the line 1010 in Fig. 6.

Fig. 11 is a perspective view of the strap hook used at corners of thecontainer illustrated in Fig. 6.

Referring first to Figs. 1 through 5, the container illustrated includesa side wall unit 10 and a bottom unit 12 which comprises a pallet. Thepallet 12 includes a top supporting surface 14 which can be formed as awood frame. To the underside of the supporting surface 14, there isattached a plurality of wood spacer blocks 16; and to the bottom facesof these blocks, wood slats are nailed. This construction of a pallet isgenerally conventional and permitsthe forks of a lift truck to beinserted below the supporting face 14 from any side of the pallet.

The side wall unit 10 in the form illustrated herein comprises tworectangular panels 24) and 22 each of which is folded along a transversescore line 24 into a side wall panel 26 and an end wall panel 28. These7, 2,854,165 Patented Sept. 30, 1958 panels are formed of fibre boardsuch as corrugated board or other similar low-cost material.

Referring particularly to Fig. 5, the panel 26 is reinforced on itsinner face both in a vertical and a horizontal plane by a rectangularframe member and the panel 28 is similarly reinforced on its inner faceby a frame member 32. These frames are formed of thin slats of wood. Inthe embodiment illustrated, frame 30 includes upper and lowerhorizontally extending slats 34 and 36 and vertically extending slats38, 40 and 42. Frames 32 likewise include horizontally extending slats44 and 46 and vertically extending slats 48, 50 and 52. These slats aresecured together in the manner illustrated to form the frames 30 and 32with the overlapping portions of the slats nailed together and nailed,stapled or otherwise secured to the inner faces of panels 26 and 28. itwill be observed that frames 30 and 32 are spaced apart slightly as at54 and that the ends of the horizontal slats terminate a short distanceinwardly of the vertical edges of panels 26 and 28 as indicated at 56.It will also be noted that the slats 48 and 52 are spaced at shortdistance inwardly of the opposite ends of slats 44 and 46 as indicatedat 58 and that the slats 38 and 42 are spaced at short distance inwardlyof the ends of slats 34 and 36 as indicated at 60.

When the panels 20 and 22 are folded along the score lines 24 andarranged on pallet 12 in the form of the container illustrated, it willbe noted particularly with Figs. 3 and 4 that at each corner of thecontainer, a rigid reinforced construction is provided At the cornersadjacent the score lines 24, the end faces of slats 34 and 36 abutagainst the inner faces of slats 44 and 46 and the end face of slat 42abuts against the inner face of slat 48. Likewise, at the open cornersof the container, the end faces of slats 34 and 36 abut against theinner faces of slats 44 and 46 and the end face of slat 38 abuts againstthe inner face of slat 32. This arrangement of the slats at the opencorners of the container is referred to in the claims as a right angleabutting relationship. The container is thus provided with wellsupported corners.

The slats from which the frames 30 and 32 are fashioned are preferablyrelatively thin an wide. For example, the slats are preferably from twoto four inches in width and from A" to /8" thick. Slats of theseproportions have been found to combine light weight with relativelygreat strength. It may be supposed that slats of this size would tend towarp; but we have found that when the frames 30 and 32 are nailed orstapled to the corrugated paper panels 28 and 30, the inherent stiffnessof these panels prevents these slats from warping.

When it is desired to assemble panels 20 and 22 on pallet 12, the twopanels 22 and 24, each of which comprises a side wall panel 26 and anend wall panel 28, are arranged together in the form of a tube asdescribed; and a wire band 62 is fastened around the girth of thecontainer near the upper edge thereof. A conventional spring steel strapmay be used in place of the wire band 62, if desired. The open tube isthen placed on pallet 12. For the purpose of locating the side wall uniton pallet 12, each corner of the pallet has secured thereto a rightangle bracket 64 which is preferably stamped from sheet metal. Brackets64 prevent the tubular side wall unit 10 from shifting laterally onpallet 12. These brackets also reinforce the lower corners of the unit10 and thus eliminate the need for a steel band 62 around the lower endof unit 10. Corner brackets 64 are secured to blocks 16 by nailing as at66; and if desired, nails 68 may also be driven through brackets 64 intoframes 30 and 32 to prevent the unit 10 from working up from the pallet12 due to vibration of conveyances, etc. We have found, however, thatunit 10 can be firmly held on pallet 12 by looping wires 70 around thelower slats 36 and the side edge portions of pallet 12.. The wires 70extend through apertures 72 in the side wall panels 26. Referring now toFigs. 6 through 11 where a modified form of container according to thepresent invention is illustrated, the .side wall unit is designated74and the bottom unit comprises the pallet 76. Pallet 76 :is constructedgenerally the same as pallet 12 with a top supporting surface 78preferably formed of wood, with wood blocks 80 and with wood slats 82nailed'to the bottom there is secured a frame 96. Frame 94 comprises topand bottom wood slats 95 and 97 and vertically extending slats 98, 100and 102. Frame 96 comprises top and bottom slats 104 and 106 andvertical slats 108, 110 and 112. It will be observed that the lowerslats 106 and 97 extend along and adjacent the lower edges of panels 84and 86 and that the vertically extending slats project outwardly downbeyond the lower edges of panels 84 and 86 as indicated at 113;

To assemble the panels 84 and 86 with-the pallet 76, the panels 84 and86 are'first folded along the score lines 88 into right angle shape andthen positioned relative to one another to form the rectangular tubularunit 74. At the open corners of unit 74, the panels 84 and 86 areprovided with strap books 114. These hooks are L-shaped (Fig. 11) andare provided with notches 116 which, when the panels adjacent the opencorners of the container are moved vertically towards one another,interengage and thereby provide a very rigid corner construction. At thecorners of the container where the corrugated board forms the connectionbetween the side and end panels, a wire loop 118 is secured to reinforcethese corners.

The tubular unit 74 thus formed is then slipped over pallet 76 with theprojecting ends 113 of the vertical slats pointing downward. Theprojections 113 engage the side edges of pallet 76 and thereby preventlateral movement of unit 74 relative to pallet 76. Unit 74 may beprevented from shifting upwardly on pallet 76 by driving nails throughthe projecting ends 113 and the adjacent positioned blocks 80 on pallet76. However, for the purposes of rendering the assembly and disassemblyof these containers simpler, it is preferred to retain the unit 74firmly in place on pallet 76 by nailing wood blocks 120 to the innerfaces of two or more of the projecting portions 113 of thevertical'slats when the frames 96 are originally formed. The blocks 120 arearranged to-engage the underside of'the frame which provides the topsupporting surface 78 of pallet 76. Each support block 80 of the palletadjacent the cleats or blocks 120 is spaced slightly inwardly from theside edges of pallet 76 to accommodate these blocks as illustrated inFig. 10. The lower edges of blocks 12% may be chamfcred as at 122 sothat to interconnect the unit 74 with the pallet 76, it is simplynecessary to position the unit 74 on pallet 76 and then push itdownwardly so that the vertical slats on which the blocks 120 aresecured are flexed outwardly by reason of the chamfer 122 andthen snapinwardly to a position wherein the blocks 12%) engage the underside ofthe top supporting surface 78. We have found that if a block 120 issecured to the inner face of projection 113 of the two center slats 110on the side walls 92, side wall unit 74 is effectively prevented fromworking up from pallet 76 it will be appreciated, of course, that othermeans such as illustrated at 79 in the previous embodiment of containerillustrated may be employed for holding the side wall unit 74 firmly onthe pallet 76.

Thus it will be seen that the collapsible pallet type well protected bythe container.

'4 container disclosed'herein is admirably suited for use in thoseinstances where a light weight, fairly rigid collapsible type of palletcontainer is required. The combination of the wood slat frames with thecorrugated hard board wall panels provides a very rigid construction.The wood frames impart rigidity to the corrugated wall panels; and atthe same time, the corrugated board imparts further rigidity to the woodframes. The containers described herein can be knocked down into a verycompact condition for storage by or shipment'to the user. At the sametime, the containers are designed such that they can be assembled anddisassembled very readily and quickly without the use of nails.Furthermore, the containers are constructed so as to afford substantialprotection to the merchandise crated therein.

Referring to Fig. 8, for example, it will be noted that an article suchas designated by broken lines 124 is very In. each form of containerdescribed, the side faces of the article are spaced from the outersurface of the container by two thicknesses of wood slats and onethickness of corrugated hard board. Thus, the liability to damage the'merchandise within the container is minimized. It will be appreciated,of course, that the vertically and horizontally extending slats need notbe positioned entirely on the outer face or the inner face of the wallpanels. These frames may be constructed such that the corrugated boardis sandwiched between the horizontally and vertically extending slats.Furthermore, it will be appreciated that the side wall unit of thecontainer may be formed of two individual end panels and two individualside panels suitably secured together in the manner illustrated eitherin Fig. 4 or Fig. 8; or, if desired, all the panels may be securedtogether by using tape or the like at the corners of the container in'accordance with general commercial practice.

We claim:

l. A collapsible pallet type container comprising a rectangular palletforming the bottom wall of the container and a pair of rectangularlyshaped fiberboard panels on the pallet,'each forming one side wall andone end wall of the container, each panel having a pair of openrectangular wood frames secured to the outer side thereof, each framehaving a pair of wood slats spaced longitudinally of the panel andextending transversely thereof, said slats forming the vertical sideedges of the side and end walls formed by the panel, each frame alsohaving a pair of wood slats extending adjacent the opposite longitudinaledges of the panel and being secured to the ends of the transverselyextending, slats in overlapping relation, the transversely extendingslats of the adjacent ends of the two frames on each panelbeing spacedapart longitudinally of the panel so that each panel canbe folded alonga line between said last two mentioned slats into a flat compactcondition wherein the inner faces of the portions of the panelforming'the side and end walls are in coplanar engagement and whereinthe frames are disposed on opposite sides of the folded panel, thetransversely extending slats at the other ends of the frames and theends of the longitudinally extending slats adjacent said last mentionedtransversely extending slats extending outwardly beyond the verticalfree edges of the panels, said panels each being bent into L- shapealong said line and arranged on said pallet with their free verticaledges at -a pair of diagonally opposite corners of the pallet, wireloops extending through said overlapping end portions of the frames atthe corners of the container formed by said bend lines, the outwardlyextending edge portions of said longitudinally extending slats and saidtransversely extending slats at said diagonally opposite corners beingarranged'in right angle abutting relation and releasable hook means forholding said last mentioned corners in assembled relation, said hookmeans comprising two pairs of L-shaped straps each comprising two sidewalls joined at an angled corner, one pair securedto each of thepanelsat "di r agonally opposed corners, one strap in each pair having anupwardly opening notch at the angled corner thereof and the other havinga downwardly opening notch at the angled corner thereof, said strapsbeing releasably interengaged at said notches to hold said panels inassembled condition.

2. A collapsible pallet type container comprising a rectangular palletforming the bottom wall of the container and a pair of rectangularlyshaped fiberboard panels on the pallet, each forming one side wall andone end wall of the container, each panel having a pair of openrectangular wood frames secured to the outer side thereof, each framehaving a pair of wood slats spaced longitudinally of the panel andextending transversely thereof, each framealso having a pair of woodslats extending adjacent the opposite longitudinal edges of the paneland being secured to the ends of the transversely extending slats inoverlapping relation, the transversely extending slats of the adjacentends of the two frames on each panel being spaced apart longitudinallyof the panel so that each panel can be folded along a line between saidlast two mentioned slats into a flat compact condition wherein the innerfaces of the portions of the panel forming the side and end walls are incoplanar engagement and wherein the frames are disposed on oppositesides of the folded panel, the ends of the longitudinally extendingslats adjacent the opposite ends of the panels extending outwardlybeyond the vertical free edges of the panels, said panels each beingbent into L-shape along said line and arranged on said pallet with theirfree vertical edges at a pair of diagonally opposite corners of thepallet,

wire loops extending through the end portions of the longitudinallyextending slats at the corners of the container formed by said bendlines, the outwardly extending edge portions of said longitudinallyextending slats at said diagonally opposite corners being arranged inright angle abutting relation, and releasable hook means for holdingsaid last mentioned corners in assembled relation, said hook meanscomprising two pairs of L- shaped straps each comprising two side wallsjoined at an angled corner, one pair secured to each of the panels atdiagonally opposed corners, one strap in each pair having an upwardlyopening notch at the angled corner thereof and the other having adownwardly opening notch at the angled corner thereof, said straps beingreleasably interengaged at said notches to hold said panels in assembledcondition.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTSKoester Apr. 24, 1956

